Jeff, not only is this not true; it is also not very scientific. Science is not “decreed” by a self-appointed “authority”; it is determined by facts and data. The IAU can vote that the sky is green, but that wouldn’t make it any less blue. I find it disturbing that so many would so easily cede “authority” to others even when they themselves have built careers studying astronomy. No one voted on the truth of relativity, on gravity, or on whether the universe has one or many galaxies. Similarly, no one should vote and have the right to issue declarations for all humanity on what constitutes a planet.

Pluto is both a planet and a KBO. Why is it a problem for it to be dually classed? The first tells us what it is; the second tells us where it is. Pluto is geologically differentiated into core, mantle, and crust just like the Earth and larger planets are. It has weather and geology. These all make it very different from the majority of shapeless KBOs and asteroids.

We are learning from exoplanet discoveries that planets form in a variety of ways. Even if Pluto formed in a different process from the bigger planets, that does not in and of itself preclude it from being a type of planet–if we recognize that there are many subtypes of planets rather than just two.

I am also very disappointed to hear of someone being banned from Change.org. Walabio, I would recommend trying to start another account there via a different email address. If that doesn’t work, email New Horizons Principal Investigator Dr. Alan Stern, explain your situation, and ask if he can add your name to the list of supporters.

Wow. I didn’t know that.

Note: the word “Forever” means the stamp is always good for first class postage, and is crossed out here to prevent forgery.

And here I thought it was a commentary on Pluto’s planetary status ;p

I don’t know just how bright the Sun is from Pluto, but I think like the Moon here, it’d be bright, but not enough for me to see color, and would be dim enough to look at without eye damage. I’m speculating because I can’t do the math while I’m at work.

Waaaaaaaaaaait a minute … that’s not a picture of Pluto, it’s a picture of Goofy!

@30 Dragonchild: I’d imagine it’d look like whatever New Horizons manages to see, but illuminated in starlight conditions. Pluto gets just as much starlight as Earth’s night side; I’m tempted to call Earth’s atmospheric scattering and the Sun on Pluto’s day side a wash.

Is the sun really that dim at that distance? Would it then not be possible (for humans) to see color?

I’ve always wondered, how bright would Pluto actually look, to human eyes?

Interesting question – I’m not exactly sure of the answer and it would depend on where we were seeing it from. Ken Croswell asks a good question of his own here :

http://kencroswell.com/PlutoQuestion.html

on just how bright Pluto would be if it was closer. (If you haven’t seen that already maybe?)

See also :

http://www.space.com/13703-pluto-horizons-subsurface-ocean.html

regarding possible oceans within Pluto.

Plus :

http://www.space.com/3904-pluto-moon-ice-machine.html

for an item on ice geysers that could exist on Charon. These are extraordinary little worlds.

*****

“…Marc Buie can very easily imagine what it must be like to walk around on Pluto: with less than 1% of your weight on Earth because of the low gravity, at temperatures of 230 degrees below zero, in the twilight because the Sun is nothing more than a dazzling star in the black sky, across snowfields of methane ice and transparent crystals of frozen nitrogen and with a gigantic moon hanging overhead – at least if you are on the right side of the planet.”
- Page 61, ‘The Hunt For Planet X’, Govert Schilling, Copernicus Books, 2009.

I’ll sign that petition for sure!

Great idea here – thanks BA & Dan Durda.

Even though snail mail is becoming obsolete, stamps can be true works of art.
This one is beautiful

This can lead to a follow up stamp, though. The real pluto, king of the KBO’s! Or was it a dog…I forget….

Yeah, I guess it doesn’t mean “forever a planet”!

Anyway, a very nice stamp. It reminds me of some of the Apollo era stamps.

Question: Are the stars just background, or are they “astronomically correct”?

Back in 2008, after Obama won the election, Change.Org had people submit petitions for President Obama on his first day. People voted them up. The top 10 would be delivered on that first day.

1 of the petitions was to ban nontherapeutic sexual genital mutilation of minors and end Medicaid/Medicare-funding of nontherapeutic sexual genital mutilation.

That petition was in the top 5 when it disappeared. When contacted, the reply was that Change.Org had no interest in carrying the Petition. This is from an organization claiming that it is devoted to Free Speech. Also, meddling with elections goes against the stand of Change.Org for Voter-Verifiable Elections so that people like Walden “The ElectionFixer” O’Dell of Diebold.Com cannot steal any more elections.

Many complained about this to Change.Org. Change.Org responded by banning all complainants and everyone who voted up the petition before its removal.

I cannot sign the petition. I recommend that one setup future petitions on other sites because Change.Org is an untrustworthy hypocritical site.